The document discusses Exxon's unethical communication following the Exxon Valdez oil spill. Exxon blamed others for failures in its crisis contingency plan when it was Exxon management that was at fault for the disorganized plan. The document recommends that Exxon follow philosophies like Deontology to ensure honest communication and build trust with stakeholders through continuous engagement using models like the Stakeholder Alignment model. Working closely with organizations like NOAA could also help Exxon improve its crisis response plans and communications.

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Running head: EXXON’S ETHICAL ISSUE
Exxon’s Guide to Ethical Communication
Heather Mueller
Ithaca College

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Exxon’s Guide to Ethical Communication
The key issue presented in the Exxon Case Study is that Exxon communicated in an
unethical manner when its crisis contingency plan failed (McGill & Seeger, 2000, p.177).
Inadequate communication, along with the absence of an effective plan minimizes trust, which is
what oil companies need to avoid if they want to uphold a respectable company image.
Analysis
Companies that work with highly toxic substances often have spills that can be seen as
normal accidents (Cleveland, 2008, par.1). However, if “the company is ill-prepared to handle
the situation,” (Waddock, 2008, p.23) it becomes a considerable crisis. The crisis worsens when
companies provide false statements and do not take responsibility for their actions. When
Exxon’s tanker Valdez spilled 10.9 million gallons of oil into Alaska’s Prince Williams Sound,
Exxon management blamed the Alaskan Coast Guard and the captain of the tanker for the failure
of the crisis contingency plan (Cleveland, 2008, par.1). The plan did not fail because of
irresponsible stakeholders, it failed because Exxon management had a disorganized plan. Exxon
blamed others for the mistakes made by its management and gave false statements stating the
Coast Guard did not complete his part of the plan and that the captain drove drunk, thus firing
him (McGill & Seeger, 2000, p.180). Lying and irresponsibility are two examples of unethical
behavior, and these behaviors led to poor trust and miscommunication between stakeholders.
“Incorrect and misleading statements is helpful to no one,” (McGill & Seeger, 2000, p. 180) and
only makes Exxon’s management appear untrustworthy and worsens the crisis.
Exxon needs a way to truthfully communicate with the Alaskan Coast Guard and its
employees so all emergency plans can be carried out efficiently. With new plans, the oil spill can
be effectively handled so the company maintains an ethical and positive image.

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Solutions
Exxon management needs to develop ethical communication skills to truthfully
communicate with stakeholders. One way Exxon management could develop ethics would be to
follow a philosophical perspective called Deontology. Deontology is the “study of moral
obligations or duty”, and “deontologists evaluate acts regardless of their consequences”
(Murphy, Hildebrandt, and Thomas, 2008, p.312). Exxon management would always tell the
truth if they followed this philosophy (Murphy et al., 2008, p.312). If the management always
told the truth, the rest of the company would become ethical as well because “others in the
organization would observe and model their behavior” (Murphy et al., 2008, p.321). In the event
that Exxon were to experience another crisis, the management should practice Deontology,
allowing them to immediately take all responsibility for the crisis, and not lie or blame others.
With the new philosophy, there would not be any miscommunication, stakeholders would trust
Exxon, and Exxon could uphold its image as a respectable and responsible company.
Another way Exxon can built trust with its stakeholders is with the Stakeholder
Alignment model (EBM, n.d.). This model views’ a “company’s relationships as life-long
partnerships” that are achieved with continuous communication. Exxon needs to show “regard to
the interests of all its groups of partners,” (EBM, n.d.) to built trust. Once trust is built, Exxon
can effectively and truthfully communicate with the Alaskan Coast Guard and its employees.
When companies have common objectives, there is no need for lying or blaming others (EBM,
n.d.). If stakeholders come together on behalf of the company facing a crisis, they can help rather
than getting in the way to resolve the situation (Waddock, 2008, p. 23).
Since “ethics is often a communication issue,” (Murphy et al., 2008, p. 321), Exxon
needs guidance to ensure honest communication. Exxon could work closer with The National

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Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which is a “federal agency focused on the
condition of the oceans and the atmosphere” (OR&R, 2005). NOAA has a division called The
Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R) that specifically respond to “oil and chemical spills
in U.S. waters and helps the On-Scene Coordinator make timely operational decisions” (OR&R,
2005). OR&R would assist Exxon by leading the team at the spill and working with management
to organize a press release including the company’s ethical values because press releases
“frequently follow an organizational crisis when the crisis calls the organization’s values into
question” (Murphy et al., 2008, p.320). OR&R would help Exxon improve its crisis contingency
plan and would work as a leader to ensure that the plan runs efficiently, so there is no
miscommunication or unethical behavior.
The Chrysler Corporation behaved unethically when the company committed mail and
wire fraud by disconnecting odometers on cars for personal test drives and selling them as new
(Gordon, 1987, par. 3). Top Chrysler official Lee Iacocca immediately arranged a news
conference and apologized for the tampering. He believed “selling damaged cars that had been
repaired as new was dumb'' and that Chrysler had “nobody but themselves to blame” (Holusha,
1987, par.14). By quickly addressing the issue, Mr. Iacocca made the “right ethical decision
regarding corporate wrongdoing” (Murphy et al., 2008, p.309). This allowed Chrysler to retain
strong trust and communication with its customers, therefore upholding the company image.
Conclusion
The course of action that Exxon should follow is to adapt the philosophy of Deontology
and follow the Stakeholder Alignment model, so all communication is continuous and truthful.
Exxon should also work closer with NOAA to ensure its crisis plan runs efficiently. These
solutions will allow Exxon to maintain ethical behaviors, and be seen as a respectable company.

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References
Cleveland, C. J. (2008). Exxon Valdez oil spill. In The encyclopedia of earth. Retrieved
November 26, 2008, from http://www.eoearth.org/article/Exxon_Valdez_oil_spill
EBM. (n.d.). Stakeholder alignment. Retrieved November 26, 2008, from
http://www.ebml.co.uk/html/stakeholder_alignment.html
Gordon, A. (1987). Chrysler image in for repairs. Retrieved December 4, 2008, from Newsday,
Inc. Web site: http://www.algordon.com
Holusha, J. (1987, December 15). Chrysler enters no contest plea over odometers. The New York
Times, pars. 1-16. Retrieved December 2, 2008, from http://query.nytimes.com
McGill A. D. & Seeger M. W. (2000). Ethical Issues in Exxon’s Response to the Valdez
Crisis. In G. Peterson (Ed.). Communicating in organizations: A casebook (2nd ed.). (pp.
177-181). Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.
Murphy, H.A., Hildebrandt, H.W., & Thomas, J.P. (2008). Business communication and the
ethical context. In S. Hamula, K. Kalman, M. Kish, K. Komaromi, & W. Ressler (Eds.).
Introduction to strategic communication [custom text] (pp. 306-327). Hightstown, NJ:
McGraw Hill Primis Online.
OR&R. (2005). OR&R across the U.S. In Emergency. Retrieved November 26, 2008, from
NOAA Web site: http://response.restoration.noaa.gov/
Waddock, S. (2008). Stakeholders: The relationship key. In S. Hamula, K. Kalman, M. Kish,
K. Komaromi, & W. Ressler (Eds.). Introduction to strategic communication [custom
text] (pp. 1-39). Hightstown, NJ: McGraw Hill Primis Online.

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